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I have a friend whos a real rascal. He wangles his way into places he doesnt belong better than an A-list celeb thronged by his thick-muscled posse. He slips out of trouble like a greased David Blaine. This guys smart but hes no Mensa grad. Hes not that good-looking, and hes not well-connected. The tools of his trade? His genuineness and natural charm. Hes likeable. Watching him work is remarkable. Its not so much what he says its all about how he says it. And dont think hes some butt-smoocher. Ive seen him tell people to take a long walk off a short pier, and they look forward to the trip!

My friend is a poster boy for reminding us, as we craft strategies and executions for our advertising campaigns, that brand character can be even more persuasive than the actual selling message. Its hard to be emotionally committed to an attribute. Features dont beget followers.

A great deal of strategic development time is focused on getting the message right: delivering the single-minded relevant point to the target. We task it with being original, unique. Ownable. I was schooled that this was by far the most critical element in strategic positioning because it was where the big idea dwelled. Well, according to Jack Trouts latest missive in Forbes, there are no new ideas anymore. We are blowing time -- and our clients money -- with the over-reliance on the rationale. (www.forbes.com/2006/09/13/jack-trout-on-marketing-biz-cx_jt_0915minds.html)

At my advertising agency, NYCA (http://www.nyca.com), we grow our clients businesses with inspired ideas. We know its important to concentrate on the brainy quotient, sure, but weve learned to heavy-up on the tone, the manner, the body. Thats where brand personality comes strolling in, dressed for success, making the everlasting first impression before he ever speaks an SAT word.

We can learn from a master teacher: Apple. You wouldnt know it from their raving user base but these are machines, for cripes sake. Plastic, wires, glass and tiny pieces soldered together to help create pictures and words, remember them, and connect. But I know MAC users who would rather go graphic-less in public than fraternize with a PC. They would revolt, feeling like they are betraying their friend. The machine seems to understand them, empower them but this is lunatic devotion. A MAC has no feelings (yet!) so why does it stir them up? And, techies, please dont blog/flog me with, Its the operating system. Thats just a microportion of the emotional equation. To see it another way: Id venture that PC people could more easily emotionally speaking - move to Mac than the other way around. They arent as devoted to IBM and the like as MAC users are to Apple. IBM just doesnt have the magnetic personality of Apple.

The Apple personality was brilliantly reverse-designed. They may have built the machine first but they sold the personality first. So the initial contact is the embrace of the upbeat, creative, change-the-world brand character before you ever boot up. Its in the logo. And at every touch point, the personality is true. We feel the easiness in their open, friendly, clean-lined stores, enjoy the good-natured yet competitive TV ads, groove with (not just listen to) their iPod communications, hug their black-jeaned, bespectacled wonderboy leader. Personality perfectly designed.

Barbara Coulon, vice president of trends for market researcher Youth Intelligence, says that surveys show, "Apple has a clear brand personality. People feel like they are part of a tribe. There are a lot of people who are passionate about it. It's sort of a cult brand. Apple is a way of life." (http://www.macnewsworld.com/story/40151.html)

So study up and invent a brand message thats university smart. But invest some creative muscle in developing the brands personality so its genuinely persuasive.

Great brands have defined personalities within their categories but theyre not exclusive to their sector, so you can easily borrow inspiration. Here are two examples of one personality statement: Down-to-earth, family-oriented, genuine, and sincere. Now, who would that be - Coke or Pepsi? Easy. But pour a glass of each and stand an inch from them - you couldnt tell the difference. Brown sugar water is brown sugar water.

Take the same words for a car: Volvo or BMW? Again, no doubt. Because their brand personalities distinguish them as much as their safety or handling claims. Better.

A well-developed personality has the power to engage from afar, stir deep feelings, and make it all up-close and personal. And thats the flashpoint where interest moves into buying, and buying into loyalty.

You know, maybe my rascal friend is a genius after all.

Michael Mark is Creative Director/CEO of NYCA, a full-service marketing agency that grows businesses with inspired ideas. NYCA has grown business for clients like TaylorMade Golf, San Diego Convention and Visitors Bureau, Rossa Putters, Maxfli Golf, ViewSonic Corp., The San Diego Union-Tribune, http://SignOnSanDiego.com, The EastLake Company, Kyocera Wireless, DIRECTV, Penta Water, National City Mile of Cars, AutoAnything, First Dental Health, TaylorMade Performance Labs, and others. To find out how NYCA can grow your business, log on to http://www.nyca.com. Chrysler
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We all have the same goal when it comes to buying a car and making sure we get the most possible for our trade-in.

At the least, we want to make sure that we're not being taken advantage of.

So, with the advent of the internet and the myriad of car information now available to us, we point ourselves over to Kelley Blue Book to find this all-important value.

Later, when we're actually negotiating with a Dealer, we find it's not quite this easy. The Dealer's trade-in figure is lower than the one we got from the internet.

So, we whip it out and ask for an explanation, and rightfully so.

The truth of the matter is that a vehicle's "trade-in value" is not a number that is simply black and white. It's quite "gray" actually.

You see, it's not unlike valuing your own home. What is your home worth? Well, you can get a ballpark idea ... maybe a general price range. But a precise and fair figure? Nope.

Why? Because there are a number of other factors that determine "value".

What have similar homes (or cars) sold for recently? How long did it take them to sell? Is demand currently strong? Weak? Somewhere in between? What's the premium currently being paid for extra features such as a pool or a shed (sunroof or leather)?

A Dealer tries to access such issues, and of necessity, "opinion" and "subjectiveness" are going to play a significant role. And much the same way as having your house appraised for a loan, you'll get different answers from different "experts".

Another factor is very fluid. The Dealer will certainly check what similar vehicles have sold for at the wholesale, Dealer-Only car auctions. Have there been a lot of them? Did the bidding of other Dealers indicate local Dealer demand?

What could he buy this same car for at the auction? If he's unable to sell it, what price would he likely get for it at the auction? Does he have other similar vehicles in stock that have been difficult to sell?

And then, whatever figure the Dealer comes up with, he's going to reduce it a bit further to reduce the risk he's taking in investing in your car. He doesn't want to lose the profit he's making on your new car when selling or disposing of your trade-in.

So what's a consumer left to do? Well, unfortunately, it's negotiate, negotiate, negotiate ... as unpleasant as it is.

The best alternative, however, is to sell the car on your own. Although this takes additional time and effort, it is often well worthwhile.

One way to do this is actually very simple: just put a "For Sale" sign in your back window. We've seen this for years, but now that virtually everyone has a cell phone, it often works quite quickly.

Another alternative is to list your vehicle online since people shop for cars on the internet now far more now than reading newspaper classified ads. High traffic sites such as AutoTrader or Cars.com charge in the $40 to $70 range and usually the ad runs until the vehicle is sold.

Joshua Rose is an Auto Broker who goes to Florida Car Auctions (http://www.auto-broker-magic.com/Used_Car_Aucti.html) on behalf of car buyers. You can learn about going to wholesale auctions in your own area at http://www.auto-broker-magic.com/car-auction.html.BMW
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